Matchup of the Century: Black Box Testing Vs. White Box Testing

Over the past few classes of the semester, we’ve gone over some of the terms as well as the methods used in software testing. Two of the methods that stood out to me were Black Box Testing and White Box Testing, mainly because I assumed they were methods that were closely related. We didn’t go in depth with these terms and methods but from what I researched and discussed with my group, my assumption was correct.

Black Box Testing is a method in which the software is tested without looking into how it works internally. Testers provide inputs then observe the outputs produced by the system. The goal is to evaluate how the system responds to “user actions that are both expected and unexpected.” This method can help identify defects, errors, and the like from a user’s perspective, as they usually have no knowledge of the inner workings of the software. This also means that testers don’t need a deep understanding of software testing or the particular code of the software; and as such, qualifications are not so important.

White Box Testing is a method in which the internals of the software are examined and tested. Testers examine everything within the software, such as the structure, logic, and code, and create test cases that assess that. This method is effective at uncovering issues with code quality and structure, bugs, and more that can’t be seen or evaluated with Black Box Testing. Like Black Box Testing, testers must ensure that the software meets specification. Unlike Black Box Testing, testers need a deep understanding of coding and software testing as well as that particular software being tested. 

I believe that both will be very important in the software development process, although I do lean towards White Box Testing having more impact. Those with specialized knowledge and skills will likely sort things out faster looking at the internals of the code than those without looking at just the inputs and outputs. It’ll generally be more effective as well as tests are done on the code and thus developers can quickly fix and solve those issues; whereas with Black Box Testing, it’s more of a way to acknowledge that there is some issue. I can only imagine Black Box Testing to be a very tedious and monotonous process although I could be completely wrong. It may be most effective to implement White Box Testing first and Black Box Testing afterward, as a double check of sorts.

Source: https://www.ranorex.com/blog/black-box-vs-white-box-testing-understanding-the-differences/